Atholl
Atholl son of Alfyn is the current chieftain of the tribe of wildlings living in and around Whitetree. He is fifty six years old. History Early Years Atholl was born in the year 311AC, to Alfyn son of Dan and Meredith. A healthy boy from birth, he rapidly grew in size and strength, trying hard to keep pace with his three elder brothers. After the events of the Winter that Burned in 308AC, Alfyn lead the restoration effort for the destroyed village of Whitetree. Enlisting the aid of a nearby Maester Janos, who was in the village for his work, he proceeded to fortify the surrounding area and rebuild what had been lost in the fire. Beneath the tutelage of his father Alfyn and the Maester Janos, Atholl quickly became educated in the finer points of engineering, learning how best to construct buildings, and where best to do it. Beneath the maester Atholl also learned of new and different farming techniques; techniques that bolstered the food production of the reemerging village and helped it grow. The power of the tribe grew, and it soon bordered the Milkwater to the north, and began to expand east. By the year 326AC Atholl had absorbed much of the knowledge of his mentors, while never neglecting his martial studies. At fifteen he was already skilled with a spear and a lover of the hunt, slaying his first bear before his sixteenth nameday. In that very same year, Alfyn son of Dan took a terrible wound in battle with another tribe. It swiftly grew infected, and despite the ministrations of the maester it became clear that Alfyn would not recover. His sons, all men grown but Atholl, prepared themselves to succeed their father, each raising men and supporters to press their claim. On a moonless night in 327AC, Alfyn son of Dan dies, and by dawn the war of succession begins in earnest. The War of Succession Atholl took the side of his brother Arson, the second son of Alfyn, and aided him in the war against their brothers. They fought for three years, the tides of battle waxing and waning but never forgotten. In the third year of the war Arson was struck down in battle and the village of Whitetree was destroyed. Atholl then took up the remnants of his brother's army, and pressed his own claim for dominion. Proving his diplomacy and skill, Atholl quickly made common cause with a neighboring tribe to the North by stealing the daughter of their chieftan, Errok the Tall. Bound by marriage and promised land and wealth by Atholl, Errok and his men crossed the Milkwater and struck the forces of Raymun, eldest son of Alfyn, in the rear. Caught between the men of his brother and Errok, Raymun fought a bloody battle upon a hill, in the ruins of Craster's Keep. There Atholl slew Raymun, breaking his army and taking what remained into his own forces. Disheartened and fearful the final two other sons of Alfyn, Dryn and Maein, made common cause against Atholl, hoping to break his strength. Infighting quickly shattered this would-be alliance, and Dryn slew Maein and fled into the woods, never to be seen again. Rule Now sole ruler of their tribe, Atholl set about rebuilding Whitetree for the second time in as many decades. The Nights Watch, aware of the war between the sons of Alfyn and the victory of Atholl, approached him with an offer. Lord Commander Gerold Sunderland offered Atholl the aid of the watch in all matters save the production of weapons, if they served as a buffer between other wildlings and the wall. Atholl, aware of the might of the southron kingdoms thanks to his education with Maester Janos, had no inclinations to head south. Atholl agreed to the deal. Working with the Watch As the people of Whitetree grew stronger, word spread to other wildlings of the deal they made with the Watch. Some agreed with Atholl's view of strengthening their own homes, and his ranks began to swell. Others saw this union as weak and traitorous, far too akin to kneeling for any proper free folk. Soon, the Whitetree wildlings began to suffer more and more raids, though their numbers were also growing. Though the watch refused to send armaments or armour, they did give the people of Whitetree thicker wools, access to Maesters, and even a small herd of horses. These the Whitetree wildings bred, forming a small contingent of horsemen that have become the core of their soldiery. Eventually things escalated to all out war with several neighboring tirbes, not least of which being the very same tribe Atholl had used against his brother. By 346AC Errok the Tall was dead, and his son, Dagmar, ruled in his stead. Dagmar had no love for the Watch, but he did not hate Atholl, and thus curbed his people's ambitions. His son, however, whom men called Bael Blackbeard, held enmity in his heart for both the Black Brothers upon the Wall and the final son of Alfyn. When Dagmar died in 364AC, the raids from beyond the Milkwater ceased. For a full year they did not return, but in the second moon of 366AC an army of wildlings crossed the Milkwater and crushed a fledgling village populated by Whitetree wildlings. Since then it has been open war between Atholl, son of Alfyn, and Bael "Blackbeard", son of Dagmar, with the dominion of Whitetree hanging in the balance. Family * Alfyn, son of Dan ** Raymun, son of Alfyn - Slain by Atholl in 331AC ** Arson, son of Alfyn - Slain in battle in 330AC ** Dryn, son of Alfyn - Fled into the wilds in 332AC, never seen again ** Maein, son of Alfyn - Slain by Dryn, son of Alfyn ** Atholl, son of Alfyn *** By the woman Dalla **** Joramun (29) **** Bridei (25) **** Varamyr (24) *** By the woman Shelagh **** Torwynd (22) **** Ryk (19) **** Iain (17) *** By the woman Tress **** Gretchel(15) **** Bann (12) Category:Wildling